Disney Springs Hotels Bus Information

The Disney Springs Hotels buses start running one hour prior to opening. For stays in 2018, those hotels are eligible for Extra Magic Hours. That means the buses should run starting one hour prior to the Extra Magic Hours time each morning.

(I'm not a morning person, so I don't have first hand knowledge. Hopefully someone who has stayed at one of these hotels and used the bus service in the early morning will confirm.)
 


Is there a universal studios bus schedule or info?

You would need to rent a car, use taxi, use Uber/Lyft or check with Mears Transportation for any fee based shuttle services and of course you could attempt public transportation but that would likely be a nightmare and several transfers.
 
What about park hopping? Would I use Disney transportation to get from one park to another or do the Disney Spring buses do that too? Can anyone use Disney transportation or do you have to be a resort guest?
 


What about park hopping? Would I use Disney transportation to get from one park to another or do the Disney Spring buses do that too? Can anyone use Disney transportation or do you have to be a resort guest?

Any guest visiting Walt Disney World can use the Disney transportation system. If you're park-hopping, you are welcome to use Disney buses/monorails/boats to get to your next park.

You are also welcome to use the one-way bus service Disney provides between the theme parks and Disney Springs. That service operates daily from 4:00pm until 11:00pm or 2 hours after theme parks close, whichever is earlier. If you happen to be staying at one of the closer Disney Springs Hotels (Hilton Buena Vista Palace or Hilton Lake Buena Vista), the walk from the Disney bus loop to the hotel isn't too far. The walk is actually pretty enjoyable if you make a pit stop for a snack and/or beverage.
 
We’re completing our Disney Springs stay.
Lessons learned on the bus system.

It takes a while. When each bus goes to a second park you could be waiting 45 minutes to get to your destination. Happy to answer any questions but I would give the bus system a thumbs down.

It’s 11pm. Left the Magic Kingdom at 9:40 and we are just leaving AK with a bus full of people. There are people in seats and people standing everywhere. It’s insane.
 
Last edited:
We’re completing our Disney Springs stay.
Lessons learned on the bus system.

It takes a while. When each bus goes to a second park you could be waiting 45 minutes to get to your destination. Happy to answer any questions but I would give the bus system a thumbs down.

It’s 11pm. Left the Magic Kingdom at 9:40 and we are just leaving AK with a bus full of people. There are people in seats and people standing everywhere. It’s insane.

Couldn't agree more - going to the parks - not so bad; returning at the end of a long day - sucks!

For MK, I almost wonder if it would be faster to walk to the Contemporary, get the bus to Disney Springs and walk back to your hotel. Will have to try it some time!!
 
Couldn't agree more - going to the parks - not so bad; returning at the end of a long day - sucks!

For MK, I almost wonder if it would be faster to walk to the Contemporary, get the bus to Disney Springs and walk back to your hotel. Will have to try it some time!!

I did that once, my issue was that DS buses were not as regular to Contemporary as all the parks ones. It took me a long time to get to DS.

DS used the after hours park bus to get to Disney Springs one night, and once walked to BW to take bus to Disney Springs.
 
We finally arrived at the B at 11:30pm. So we did take a Lyft to the Contemporary and walked to the MK one day. It was amazing but I’m sure Disney will catch on soon and prevent people from doing that.

Anyway just wanted to warn others if you use the transportation you will have to take the monorail to the ticket and transportation center, wait for your bus, go to AK and then to the hotels.
 
For stays in 2018, those hotels are eligible for Extra Magic Hours.

So, I know that the EMH are for 2018. Does anyone know when they will decide/announce if these extras the DS hotels get will carry over into 2019? Just curious. TIA. :)
 
So, I know that the EMH are for 2018. Does anyone know when they will decide/announce if these extras the DS hotels get will carry over into 2019? Just curious. TIA. :)

No, they probably don't even know. Disney is likely calculating how many rooms will be out of commission due to renovations. They may not want to risk guests moving full offsite (sending dollars to other places) or keep them onsite close to Disney Springs, which I am sure is hoping for the extra spending. It will be a $$$ decision.
 
For now, it's definitely still worth staying in Disney Springs even if you skip the transportation. The 60 days FP was really nice. Also, they sent our packages back to the B Resort which was also a nice perk!
 
We finally arrived at the B at 11:30pm. So we did take a Lyft to the Contemporary and walked to the MK one day. It was amazing but I’m sure Disney will catch on soon and prevent people from doing that.

Anyway just wanted to warn others if you use the transportation you will have to take the monorail to the ticket and transportation center, wait for your bus, go to AK and then to the hotels.

I'm confused, you left MK 9:40 & then the bus went to AK and then the B resort and you arrived 11:40? What was the delay that made it take 2 hours?
 
I'm confused, you left MK 9:40 & then the bus went to AK and then the B resort and you arrived 11:40? What was the delay that made it take 2 hours?

That's unlikely. I could see arriving at 10:40 but not 11:40.

Although it can change, one bus usually goes to Epcot followed by Disney's Hollywood Studios. The other goes to the Transportation and Ticket Center (monorail/ferry to Magic Kingdom) followed by Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Bing Maps says the route from the Transportation and Ticket Center to Disney's Animal Kingdom to be 16-20 minutes (depending on traffic). Stops tend to be quick unless there's a wheelchair or ECV involved.

The trip from Disney's Animal Kingdom to the Disney Springs Hotels is shown at 16-22 minutes. The bus makes two stops (Hilton Lake Buena Vista, Holiday Inn Disney Springs) before arriving at the B Resort and Spa. Again, those stops shouldn't take too long.

The whole process should take about an hour...not two.
 
How long does it take usually from a park to a wdw hotel? Is this a big time difference?
 
How long does it take usually from a park to a wdw hotel? Is this a big time difference?

One of the best attributes of the Disney Springs Hotels buses is that they run on a schedule. It's every 30 minutes all day long. I've spent over 100 nights and used these buses about as many times over the past several years. The buses tend to run on schedule.

If you don't know, Disney Resort buses do not run on a schedule. If you're very lucky, you'll exit a theme park and find a bus waiting to whisk you back to your resort. More often, you'll have to wait 10 or 20 or 30 minutes. It wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility to wait even longer.

(To add insult to injury, any time you have an extended wait for a Disney bus, you'll probably see multiple empty buses going to another resort. Or, maybe that just happens to me.)
 
Has anyone used DS buses to rope drop TSL? We're going in a couple weeks and I'm trying to decide whether or not I want to go to TSL. If we went, we would RD then go over to MK. From what I've heard, they let people in at 6:30ish. I don't know if we'd be able to make it there in time using DS buses since they only go an hour before park opening and HS is a second stop. I'm leaning towards getting a Lyft but I'm not sure any drivers would be available at 6 AM. I know I wouldn't be lol
 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!






Top